A Trip to s'Illot (Llevant)
By Arnd
Wikipedia says there was life in s´Illot around 1100 BC. Apparently about 200 inhabitants. Not much has happened since then — today there are 249.
On Perceived Distance
S´Illot is on the east coast of Mallorca, just past Port de Alcudia. It’s one of the farthest spots on Mallorca you can head to from Palma. The upside, though, is that via the motorway it doesn’t actually take that long — it certainly feels shorter than a visit to Manacor, which is actually closer.
The Spirits That I Summoned
I had asked the best wife in the world to find day trip destinations. Until now she had thankfully rarely succeeded, but this time she found s´Illot. From Pollença it’s also "only" half an hour. From the perspective of native Mallorcans, that’s roughly a day trip. I was allowed to follow later and had two hours of peace. Slightly late, I set off and took the usual route towards Alcudia. The coastal stretch between Port de Pollenca and Alcúdia is spectacular not just for kite surfers, by the way — the panorama is absolutely sensational!
From Pollença to the Atlantic?
From there it became village-like and romantic — the little road winding through the town centre along the sea felt like a small, dreamy coastal town in the south of France. Me gusta!
In general, that’s what I love so much about Mallorca. You drive half an hour and you’re in a different world! And you can repeat this quite often, which leads certain lazy husbands to find it rather unnecessary to leave the island — except to buy cars. Friends of mine, I mean…
Of course there were no parking spots, but thanks to an off-road capable car the problem was solved more or less legally. Firmly believing that a tow truck couldn’t possibly get through here, I reached the little restaurant where we were meeting.
Picnic in s´Illot
By the way, you don’t have to go to the restaurant here — as is often the case in Mallorca — you can simply have a picnic. Several tables and benches under shade-giving trees invite you to do just that!
The view is sensational. My photo unfortunately only captures it imperfectly. You’re looking at the entire Tramuntana mountain range, roughly in the middle lies Port de Pollenca, and the bay closes again to the south.
Into the Water!
If you want to swim, you dash down the little slope (not literally…) into the pebbly bay with wonderfully clear water. And if you want to scramble over the rocks that look like a giant family’s child forgot to tidy up after playing, you can let loose there too.
In general — a great spot for kids. Whether under the trees, at the beach, or in the restaurant. Everywhere — as is usually the case on the island — children are welcome guests. A huge difference to Germany!
Our waitress is delighted at how well the little ones speak Spanish, and I’m instantly sidelined. In general, the service is really nice. Please don’t expect gastronomic top performances otherwise though — this is an excursion restaurant. And the owner apparently has about 7 more in similarly great locations. They all fill up quite comfortably even without any particular kitchen highlights…
Eating at s´Illot? … The View Is Great!
There are 6 of us. And we order all over the menu, so I get to try a lot.
The gambas al ajillo are quite good. Especially impressively well peeled! The oil is obviously fresh and the cooking point nearly perfect. The garlic could have used a bit more roasted aroma. But absolutely fine! Though 16 euros can only be justified by the view!
The pimientos de padrón are also great. Which they aren’t always. Fish and chips for the kids was okay, the fries are a bit soggy and the flavour essentially non-existent.
Boldly, I had ordered "lechona" — that’s what suckling pig is called here. From "leche", milk. I was pleasantly surprised by this daily special! It may sound silly, but the potato was a poem. Really! It tasted so incredibly good. Had the texture of a new potato. If only the fries had been cut from the same tuber!
The suckling pig was layered, a bit like a lasagne. Good flavour, nicely tender, subtle taste of its own, flawless. The sautéed vegetables could have been prepared with a bit more care, but were okay. For 17 euros, that was absolutely good!
I would rather not recommend the chicken wings — others do it better… The chipirones — that’s what the small fried baby squid are called in Spanish — were actually quite good. But unfortunately watery inside. I suspect they came from the freezer, were defrosted and not drained properly.
Desserts — you guessed it — I tried several. Homemade were the tiramisu and crema catalana. Really good was the Tarta d’Almendra with the wonderfully creamy hazelnut ice cream. Did you know that this Mallorcan almond cake is actually made only from ground almonds? There’s no flour in it. And no butter either, by the way. So just as a side note, it’s also a guilt-free delicacy for people who can’t tolerate gluten.
The coulant was as expected — half the island seems to use the same supplier. It always tastes the same and looks the same. A bit like the McDonald’s of desserts. But perfectly fine, and you know what to expect…
So: If you want to while away an afternoon in s´Illot with a fantastic view and a truly different atmosphere from the south and southwest, this is the place. If there were a playground too, it would be perfect — just a suggestion perhaps.
To tire out the little bundles of energy, you can also take shorter hikes in the immediate surroundings. Just a side note, and purely theoretical on my part…
The best wife in the world had read somewhere that this place has the best sunsets on the island. So that I can honestly — or more accurately, naively — continue to claim they’re in Portixol, we simply left early!